


Touching.

by jeffgangfan



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: A HUGE BALL OF FLUFF, Best Friends, Fluff, HAPPY PERCICO WEEKEND GUYS, Harry Potter References, M/M, Percico Weekend, Percy likes to draw, searching for hobbies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-12
Updated: 2016-06-12
Packaged: 2018-07-14 13:03:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7172852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jeffgangfan/pseuds/jeffgangfan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nico was Percy's best friend so of course he was going to help Percy in finding his new hobby. While hiding his crush. Luckily, Percy didn't seem to notice that Nico was always touching him somehow.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Touching.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a gift for an-yagami on Tumblr. I hope you guys have fun reading this. It's been a while, yeah? Also, please leave some comments, guys. I would appreciate how people want to talk to me about my fics! The comments are probably the most wonderful thing!
> 
> Inspired by this: http://an-yagami.tumblr.com/post/145587318199/psychoticpingouins-theres-these-two-boys-in-my

_Crushing on Percy Jackson wasn’t so bad if you stopped running from him. It might even be the best thing if you managed to be his best friend._

“Nico, what are you thinking about?” Percy asked, his face upside down in Nico’s vision. Nico stretched and sat up from his strange position, couldn’t help wriggling a bit on Percy’s comfortable bed. The blue Nemo bed had been something obscene to think about months ago, but when one becomes friends with one’s crush, one must learn to normalize many a thing.

“Philosophy.” Was it a bit alarming that the nature of Nico’s life circulated Percy Jackson? No, because Nico had learned to let his thoughts surround each person he spent time with. If he was with Hazel, he thought Hazel-related stuffs. His mind was not solely focus on a single person anymore, which had been a bad habit.

“Do you think I should start doing vlogs? Everyone can get around these recently. It might even be the perfect way to make money.” Percy gestured at his computer screen, where an Asian vlogger was making a weird face. Untimely pausing was something Percy always managed.

“No. Hephaetus’s kids might be able to give us a bit technology, but they can’t control how many people are going to see the videos. Besides, what are you going to rant about online?”

Percy didn’t answer. Nico imagined that he was seeing an army of “Canadians” watching his vlogs and dissing him.

Not many could say that they were Percy’s best friends, not even Annabeth Chase. Best friends share hobbies and Annabeth was not exactly the type that would listen to Percy’s random suggestions without judging. Best friends do dumb things together and Annabeth wouldn’t go against the son of Poseidon in a water balloon battle, which Nico did. Best friends listen to the rants pent up from frustration and give out helpful comments, like Nico did with Percy ranting about how Annabeth didn’t want to hang out anymore. So, they were now best friends and Nico was crushing on Percy. Again. Since Annabeth no longer wanted Percy, the son of Poseidon was suddenly left with a lot of time to spare. He hadn’t known what to do in his free time, or with his life in general, so he and Nico was trying out anything they could. That, while Nico concealed his awkward feelings.

_It’s not like he was ever going to find out about your little secret. He’s obvious. And it’s much healthier this way._

So he just chuckled at Percy’s dumbfounded expression and booped his nose.

 

 

Percy was very handsome. Nico prided himself on having good taste as he watched Percy’s bright eyes followed the pencil lines on the sketchbook. Percy’s hair would be swept over to avoid it falling into his eyes, making his face brighter somehow. His eyebrow would frown a bit, but his jaw was slack so his face didn’t look harsh. The corner of his lips was upturned, mimicking the expression of the face he was drawing. Percy’s current expression was close to the look of love he gave his mother, the look of love he gave his little sister.

_Maybe one day he would look at you like that, too._

“Why are you blushing?” Percy asked, cocking his head. Nico didn’t know what to say, so he just reached out to grab Percy’s wrist. Percy dropped the pencil as he always did while Nico stroked Percy’s hand with his thumb, searching for words.

“Something weird.” Nico tapped at Percy’s long, calloused fingers. There was something strangely artistic about them, although they wielded a sword to kill. Maybe that was how the fingers of people who draw looked. Maybe Hazel’s looked just as nice.

_You wouldn’t caress Hazel’s fingers, would you?_

“One day, you should model for me, Nico.” Percy brushed off the rubber bits, showing the sketch to Nico. “Does she look okay?”

“She looks beautiful. You should add a few loose strands before her ears, though. She has the habit of tugging them up whenever she feels annoyed.” Nico’s fingers begrudgingly left Percy’s to point at the ear of Sally, who was smiling brightly in the white page. Percy flashed him a smile as thanks and lazily lined over the part without erasing. “Where do you learn to draw like this? Rachel?”

“Actually, no. We barely meet these days. Maybe we should meet up with Hazel and start our own project. And for your question, online tutorial.”

“Videos or…”

“Videos. They are easier to follow. I like to finish right after the video ends.”

“If spoken in other context-”

“Nico, you are obscene, really.” Percy poked at Nico’s rib and received a shove. He sat by the side and start tickling Nico, which made it easier to escape than being straddled. “You interpret everything like that and they will start calling you a perverted old man!”

_Will he ever straddle me for a proper tickle? Is that something couples do?_

One thing that Nico never managed was to be content with being best friends. So, he reached for Percy’s face and traced the perfect jawline he wished he could kiss, feeling the faint stubble beneath his fingertips. Percy let him and Nico sighed in relief for Percy’s obliviousness.

 

 _There is something deadly attractive about Percy. Even though he may be worn out to his limits after a basketball match_. _He’s all sweaty slicked-back hair and flashing white teeth as he gasped for air. He’s all lean muscles and agility. He’s all raspy voice and smiles._

“I have never-” Percy breathed out and it sounded like a laugh. Nico grinned, because he felt giddy when Percy was so happy. “I have never seen anything like that. You monsters.”

Reyna flipped her hair and flashed Nico a smile. “That’s called strategy. Nico and I team up against the Apollo cabin, you know.”

“So do you think basketball can do as your new hobby now?” Nico asked, his hands clasped on Percy’s sweaty shoulders. He could feel strength in muscles flexing as Percy shifted. “I think you can even find a scholarship with it, just like swimming.”

“Swimming is not something I have to try for so there’s no fun relying on it. Basketball is nice, but I don’t think the new hobby should be sports. Or anything physical.”

“Aw, that’s a pity. No fun in the non-physicals. ” Nico just couldn’t help himself. Percy laughed aloud and Reyna went red in the face. She still talked to Nico regularly, but it was not as if Nico would tell her perverted stuffs as he did with Percy, so she might have been caught off guard. But she knew how Nico still felt for Percy without asking, which made Nico felt closer to her somehow. He wanted to be close friends with her. They both had that determination of not letting the past or other people define them for who they were.

“Because it would be just like sword fighting!” Percy continued, his hair slicked back with sweat and skin radiating with salty droplets. “And I can’t exactly talk about sports all the time, right? This morning, I practice the moves that I practiced yesterday and I still get the same excitement I got yesterday and-”

“You’re exaggerating, Percy Jackson.” Reyna started to spin the ball on her index finger, but her voice still held some sort of authority. She had always been stern around Percy and Jason these days. Nico admitted that was better for Reyna than secretly resenting them. He knew for a fact that the praetor felt more relieved after they had attended therapy together. “I find sports relaxing.”

“Of course, you’re busy with praetor work and surrounded by people most of the time. Of course you would find practice relaxing, with a bit of peace right there. But I want to talk and to do something that would keep my mind busy.”

“I see. Well, if you ever find a new hobby, do ask Hazel to try it out. She’s been feeling directionless although still responsibly attending duties.” Reyna passed the ball to the sea demigod before standing up. She raised her eyebrows at Nico, a secret gesture that meant “Good luck hiding your crush” the same time Percy said “For now, I’m just going to hang out with Nico and do random things. He’s been awesome.”

Reyna’s eyes filled with amusement and joking pity. Nico sighed and just leaned against Percy, shutting his eyes with his head on Percy’s shoulder. Exhaustion finally caught up to him. He could smell salty sweat and some faint cologne.

_He’s attractive, but I wonder if he knows?_

“I can’t game for shit.” Percy poked at the keys on his keyboard. Nico was amazed at how he managed to sit through an entire game with nothing to do but watch Percy’s character die then regenerate then die again before any actual damage can be done to the ‘dire team’. Nico had advised him to try the pilot mode first, but then they both agreed that Percy learned best when he was actually doing something for real. It seemed that their actual battle instincts couldn’t help them go very far with gaming.

“I don’t think Sally would appreciate having other players swearing around on the speakers, either.” Nico plugged the headphones and gently slid it on Percy’s head. It was an unnecessary gesture because Percy didn’t look like he would want another game. Still, Nico wanted to touch his hair or even mess with it for a bit and he doubted Percy would notice.

“I’ve had enough stress and who do these Muggles think they are, really? They somehow made me regret saving the human kind in general.” Percy leaned back against his chair, strong neck exposed with a graceful long line. Nico chuckled at the Harry Potter references. Percy had tried babysitting his sister and listening to audio books, but the noises and the unexpected chores Sally usually gave him made Percy unable to pursue Muggle Literature any further. His best attempt was the Harry Potter series and that was only because he could relate to the wizard on a personal level.

“You don’t mean that.” Nico pulled away the headphones and touched Percy’s hair again, just because he could.

“What if I do?” Percy looked up at him, his sea green eyes dangerous. Of course, not dangerous in the sense of damage, but in the sense of unpredictability. Percy rarely discussed his adventures despite still facing monsters on his way home from time to time. Nico had deemed that as good until he realized that he couldn’t actually pinpoint Percy’s views on these subjects anymore.

 _“What if you do?”_ Nico refrained from asking, _because Percy had a habit of answering his own questions if you wait just a bit._

“Because when I was out there, I didn’t think of how many children I would save or how many people would be able to return to their families. I thought of Annabeth, of my mother, of Paul and friends. I thought of you and of the people I love. The rest be damned.”

“Maybe that’s not bad. Maybe that’s normal.” Nico wasn’t surprised at how he wanted to just lean down and kiss Percy anymore. He had gotten better at hiding these urges for months. Percy still looked completely kissable, but Nico prioritized reassuring him first. “Because by protecting your loved ones, you protect the loved ones of others as well. Your actions have layers of meanings. You focus on the most personal.”

“There will be a day when I have to choose between my loved ones and others.”

“You’ll choose right.”

“I’ll choose them.” Percy said and Nico wasn’t unnerved by what he heard. The psychologist had said that the attitude was normal among demigods and one day Nico was going to challenge Percy by asking him about what his loved ones might say if he sacrifices other people for them. And maybe, got something new out of Percy.

“You know, that’s a very Slytherin thing to say. Being loyal to the deserving and all.”

Percy went still.

“I just realize that we haven’t done the Pottermore Sorting quiz.” Percy declared and exited the game they had been suffering for two hours. Nico imagined the green tie matching Percy’s green eyes and leaned closer to the screen.

 

_Jason Grace is not my best friend. Percy and Reyna are my best friends because they don’t ever mention the fact that I do these silly things to Percy, like touching him whenever I could. Even if they have different reasons, at least they don’t say anything about it. Jason, however, not only asks aloud but also asks when Leo is around._

“So you guys are like, a thing, now?” Leo asked in a manner of someone who yelled, flopping down next to Nico to point at their hands _. Dear gods, I was holding his hand. I cannot control the way I do this kind of thing anymore, can I?_

“What.” Nico stuttered, a bit too weakly to his own likings. He imagined that it would hurt when Percy flinched and wrenched his hand away. He imagined the small gears turning in Percy’s head as he worked out that Nico still felt for him.

Instead, Percy just smiled and winked at Leo. “Not yet. I’m waiting for him to tell me actually. Not wanting to be pushy or anything.”

“What?” Again, Nico’s voice came out weird and unnatural as _his_ own mind worked out everything. The reason why Percy never said anything was because he _knew_?

“I am your best friend, Neeks. Now you won’t have to ask him out yourself.” Jason whispered in his ears. The bastard. Nico could barely heard him over the rumbling in his ears and the heat that was creeping up his face.

“That would be a total disaster. I wouldn’t dare confess, either. After everything that happened between us, I wonder what kind of Sibbling Shove I would receive from you guys. I guess there’s no way avoiding it now.” Percy shrugged and smiled so dazzlingly that Nico’s head spun.

_Am I in shock? Am I dreaming?_

“You knew. You-you Slytherin!” So Nico was the obvious one for thinking that Percy wouldn’t notice. There were reasons why the son of Poseidon still managed to survive until today, one of them being that he was sharp. Percy once told him that he suspected people dismissed him as being unobservant just because Percy was awkward in dealing with his love life.

_“Any teenager can be awkward when it comes to relationship and stuffs. I personally am constantly facing danger, people can’t exactly expect me to be constantly aware!” he had said and Nico had chuckled because Nico had forgiven him for not noticing a long time ago. There was still hurt but they had been working on that as well._

In this case, the awkward teenager has been Nico.

So Percy just laughed at Nico’s dumbfounded expression and booped his nose.

 

“Percy, this can be huge!” Hazel cheered and received grins from both Percy and Nico. “This might be the first Demigod’s Guide to Monsters and Mythical Creatures ever! Imagine how many demigods can be helped with this.”

“For one thing,” Rachel waved languidly, already doodling something on her parchment. “I won’t be bored for awhile.”

“I just want to have something that focuses on identifying and defeating the monsters. It would be nice to remember that instead of the stories behind them.” Percy said and dodged before Annabeth could elbow him.

“The stories may contain the methods to defeating them, you know.” The daughter of Athena tried. “Like that one time you defeated the Nemean Lion.”

“That’s where we improvise.” Nico came in. This part was his idea; he should stand up for it. “We’ll design something similar to Mythomagic, only this version should have identification and defeat tips so that anyone who plays will easily memorize it. Something similar to flash cards, but can be played for fun. The guide should include such information as well and save the story until the bottom of the page.”

“We have three volunteer artists and my cabin.” Annabeth reconfirmed as Hazel, Rachel and Percy all raised their thumbs. Nico’s heart sped up a bit at Percy’s brightening features. “I wonder if the Hunters agree to help.”

“So travelling around with them might be a possibility.” Hazel frowned while Rachel practically beamed. “I’ll see about that.”

“It’s just the beginning, guys. No need to get nervous.” Nico told them, his arms snaking around Percy’s waist. He felt rather indifferent to the possibility, because he could help people and he wouldn’t allow a grudge to ruin all of that. “Need me to shadow-travel you guys back?”

“That should work.” The girls all stood up and before Nico disappeared, Percy blew a kiss towards him.

“Ugh, disgusting.” Rachel said with Annabeth nodding in agreement. They meant no harm, but that didn’t mean Nico would let them get away with teasing him.

“Ladies, Hazel is the only one here who doesn’t harbor feelings for Percy. So if you would kindly let me-”

“Nico, you cheeky bastard!” Annabeth exclaimed. Hazel laughed so hard that she almost threw them all off balance.

When he returned, Percy was on his stomach working on a sketch already. His lean figure completely relaxed , his long legs lying in extremely strategic position-

“Nico, I know you’re staring at my ass.” Percy surprised him by speaking matter-of-factly without turning around. Resigned to the fact that his boyfriend was absolutely wonderful, Nico crawled over and lay down next to him. Percy immediately turned to gather Nico in his arms, making the son of Hades melt before their lips even touched.

“I’m glad you finally find a hobby. This might be the start of something great, a career even.” Nico gasped when they pulled away. He hid his face in the crook of Percy’s neck, the image of Percy closing his eyes and ready to kiss still lingered. Percy chuckled, because he knew Nico was still embarrassed by the fact that he could touch Percy so freely, so intimately without worrying about hiding his feelings now.

“I’m glad that you are with me. Then and now.” Nico began to kiss down Percy’s jawline and received a sigh of relief. “I’ve been waiting for you to do that for a long time, Nico.”

_Guess now I’ll know better than to think of you as oblivious. So, so in love with you, Percy._


End file.
